Roldanillo is the principal home for paragliding and hang gliding events in Colombia. Located on the west side of the Valle del Cauca at the foot of the Cordillera Occidental the town sits at an elevation of 966 meters and has an average annual temperature of 23°C.

Roldanillo is a world class paragliding competition venue, having hosted numerous National events, the World Cup and the World Paragliding Championships in 2015. The venue boasts exceptionally reliable flying conditions in January/February, with only a handful of tasks over the past few years have been cancelled. The Winter Open will be run back to back with the Colombian Nationals, which will take place either the week before, and the BGD Weightless (BGD Weightless, Colombia), the week prior to that, giving pilots the opportunity to extend their winter flying in Colombia.

The International airport at Bogotá is 1 hour by air from the regional airports of Pereira and Armenia. Roldanillo is 1 hour by road from Pereira and Armenia. Cali International Airport is 90 minutes by road from Roldanillo.

The venue and dates of the British Championship Open have yet to be finalised, but it can be confirmed the competition will be in held in Europe, likely in France. The venue and exact dates will be announced as soon as possible.

Flying site

Roldanillo is the principal home for paragliding and hang gliding events in Colombia. Located on the west side of the Valle del Cauca at the foot of the Cordillera Occidental the town sits at an elevation of 966 meters and has an average annual temperature of 23°C.

Flying conditions are generally ideal in January and only a handful of tasks over the past few years have been cancelled. Out and return and cats‐cradle type tasks of up to 120km have been successfully flown in recent events using goals to the north, centre and south of the Valle de Cauca.

Primarily an agricultural region, the Valle de Cauca has excellent infrastructure and plenty of open space to land. Main highways runs along the east and west sides of the valley connected by secondary roads. The central valley area is bisected north‐south by the Cauca river. Agricultural roads and tracks provide access to farmsteads and plantations.

The task area is characterised by the foothills of the Cordillera Occidental to the west, the wide open agricultural valley and smaller grassy hills to the east. Primarily a sugar cane growing area, the valley is easily out‐landable in safety. Very few areas are fenced and access is generally unrestricted. Occasional inundation from the Cauca river presents the only landing hazard in certain areas (dependant on preceding rainfall).

Grape plantations and military bases are off limits. These areas will be marked on maps. Goal fields are available in abundance although must be selected on the basis of the cropping and harvesting cycles. They will be defined and verified by the organisation at least 2 weeks prior to the competition.

Airspace and Other Restrictions: There are airports at Cartago in the north and Tuluá to the southeast that have infrequent military traffic. The Meet Director and event team have daily communication with the air traffic controllers and radio contact during the task.

There is traditionally an extremely high level of cooperation with the civil aviation authority, air traffic control and the event organisation. In previous events domestic flights have been rerouted to avoid the task areas.

The area south of Tuluá has a ceiling of 9000 ft (approximately 2700 m) while to the north is 10,000 ft (approximately 3000 m).

Roldanillo and Valle de Cauca is a ‘friendly’ site suitable for all qualified pilots. The conditions are generally light with 3‐4 m/s maximum climbs. Wind is usually negligible.

The only area of strong climbs and known possible turbulence at the quarry to the south is avoided through sensible tasking.

Close attention is paid at all times to the meteo forecast to ensure tasks take pilots away from the mountains in the later parts of the day to avoid any leeside rotor due to the Pacific breeze.

Thermic breeze enters launch at around 9:00 am and tasks traditionally start at around 11 a.m. Breeze is generally very light throughout the launchable window with conditions occasionally becoming tail‐wind if the meteo indicates a strong Pacific breeze.

Site Safety Record: The area has an excellent safety record with few incidents. Thermic conditions are generally regarded as light and conducive to safe tasking for all levels of pilots. The few accidents in recent events have been generally caused by aborted launches or by inexperienced pilots failing to consider the necessary glide to the valley after thermalling up behind the take off area.

Take off "Aguapanela" D01 N 076 W April 24 14.00 12 41.00 1860

Competition tasks setting issues at Roldanillo: Tasking will generally keep tp the following established logic:

1. Up to start: Start cylinders will be selected to allow pilots to climb and stabilise in various points close to the western foothills and Roldanillo in areas of known thermic activity. Experience and local knowledge allows us to select points that give various options for gaggles to wait, thus relieving congestion.

2. Start > midday : Flying in the western foothills to take advantage of thermic activity before the valley heats up and becomes active.

3. Midday > early afternoon: Flying out & return or cats cradle type tasks in the valley and utilising the eastern hills.

4. Goal: Located in the central / eastern part of the valley. The end of the speed section will be a cylinder, size & position to be decided by the task setting committee. The goal will be either a cylinder or a line for the end of task.

Maps of task area: Pilots will be issued with an A3 printed waypoint map showing waypoints, restricted areas and topography. Excellent base maps are available from the Colombian cartographic institute.(www.igac.gov.co). Large scale task maps will be available at launch / pilot briefing.

Selection and entry fee

UPDATE, Last minute registrationsAny pilot wishing to participate in the event by attending the venue must come to HQ before 16:00 (4pm) on the Saturday 18th. Your name and details will be recorded and we will inform you at 19.00 (7.00pm) if you have been successful in gaining a place. Selection will be by priority to British pilots, and thereafter by WPRS points, highest first.

Any pilot that cannot attend registration before the close of registration at 18.00 (6pm) MUST inform us in advance. Failure to do so will mean your place being given to another pilot. You can find contact details at the bottom of this page.

---------------

Registration Process 2020Your registration requires approval that you meet the minimum Pilot Entry Requirements for the British Paragliding Open Competitions 2020.

Approved pilots will be invited to pay for each competition according pilot rank (see below).

Your place at a competition is not confirmed until we have received your payment for the competition. The Pilot Lists show the current status of your registration.

Pilots are listed for each competition in ranked order and confirmed entry to the competition will be prioritised based on rank.

Pilots will be ranked for the competition as follows:

British pilots will be ranked by date/time of registration (NOT date/time of payment).Pilots of other nations will be ranked by their highest WPRS position in the past 2 years.British pilots will be listed by rank first, followed by pilots of all other nations by rank. British pilots will be invited to pay first in ranked order, followed by pilots of other nations one week later, also in ranked order.IMPORTANT: When you register for a competition, if you do not enter your ‘correct’ FAI and CIVL numbers then you will not be ranked correctly. Note: if you are a British pilot your FAI number is your BHPA number. Also when you register you will be required to enter your ‘FAI Sporting Licence Nationality’. This is not another nationality you happen to hold, nor is it where you were born, or where you currently live, but is the country that issued your Sporting Licence (‘United Kingdom’ for BHPA issued licences).

Once a competition is full, pilots will be added to a waiting list and then if a place becomes available it will be offered to the next highest ranked pilot on the list. The pilot will receive an email from us inviting them to pay their entry fee and will have 1 week to do so before the place is offered to the next highest ranked pilot on the list.

PaymentThe entry fee for 2020 will be £220 for each Open competition. (950,000 COP or 300 USD for local currency payments)Fees and dates will be strictly adhered to. Payments are made on our website via PayPal with a Credit Card, Debit Card, or using your own PayPal account. PayPal uses data encryption for the protection of your card details. The pilot entry fee includes the fee charged by PayPal for administering your online payment. We do NOT accept cheques or American Express. If you wish to pay for more than one person’s entry fee on-line you must do so logged-in as each pilot.

If you are offered a place at a competition venue, at the start of the competition, then you must pay your pilot entry fee in cash, in the local currency.

The pilot entry fee for each competition is set according to the real cost of organising and hosting the competition. We do not aim to make a profit.

Please Contact Us if you have a difficulty making payment.

RefundsFor each competition entered, any pilot who cancels their registration will be given a refund as follows:

Cancellation date more than 60 days before competition start date: 50% refundCancellation date between 60 and 30 days before competition start date: 30% refundCancellation date less than 30 days before competition start date: 0% refundThe following caveat applies:

Any pilot proving (with medical certificate) incapacity to compete through illness/injury should Contact Us the British Paragliding Competitions Panel as soon as possible. Any refund, if appropriate, will be decided by the British Paragliding Competitions Panel. Refunds will NOT be issued to ill/injured pilots cancelling within 7 days of the start of a competition regardless of personal circumstances, rather pilots should contact their travel insurance provider for advise on any compensation due.Cancellation of a Competition by the OrganisationIn the event the organisers deem it necessary to cancel, relocate, or reschedule the competition before the first scheduled day you will be entitled to a partial refund of any entry fees paid to the organisers.

After the start of the competition any refunds will be at the sole discretion of the organisers.

The organisers will not be liable for any costs incurred by anyone attending, or intending to attend the event, or any consequential losses arising from the cancellation, relocation, or rescheduling of the event.

Accommodation and Activities

There are a lot of kind of Hotels, farms, rooms in houses that you can book for your accommodation.

You can use tripadvisor, trivago, airbnb, etc... web pages or apps.

How to get here

To get Roldanillo you can arrive by airplane to Pereira city, Armenia city or Cali city, then you need to get a taxi or a bus to Roldanillo will be around 2 hours approx.

Cl. 8 #7-57, Roldanillo, Valle del Cauca, Kolumbia Roldanillo CO

Plane

Most international flights layover in Bogota's "El Dorado International Airport". The international and domestic terminals are connected by a shuttle. From Bogota take the quick domestic flight to Armenia, Pereira, or Cali where you can easily find ground transport to Roldanillo. For cost and convenience we highly recommend you fly into Pereira.If you would like the organization to pick you up from Cali or Pereira please contact us with a detailed itinerary and plan. We would also appreciate a call or email during your layover in Bogota confirming your on time arrival.Local airport taxis are safe and offer competitive pricing for 1 or 2 pilots with gear. Groups should contact the organization for pickup. Budget travelers can find buses to Roldanillo from Pereira, Cali, or Armenia. The bus terminals and airports are separate.

PereiraRecommended city to fly into. 1 and 15 minute drive to Roldanillo.

CaliThe second most important airport in Colombia. Cali's “Alfonso Bonilla Aragon” airport services domestic and international flights and adds new international routs regularly. 2 hour drive to Roldanillo.

ArmeniaSmaller airport and city with less service. 1 and 30 minute drive to Roldanillo.

Bus

From the bus terminals in Pereira, Cali, or Armenia look for the Roldanillo's local bus company De Occidente for safe and comfortable transport.De Occidente: www.deoccidente.com/roldanillo/The company is comfortable servicing international Paraglide pilots and very helpful.

Publish your event page in a special format designed to cover all organizer’s needs. Enjoy administrative tools and promotional features! Live track your event using pilots’ smartphones, GSM and satellite trackers.